Review: Iris Payroll Business makes paying people simple

Iris Payroll Business looks familiar and works well but has its limitations

Iris Payroll Business screen shot

By Techbyte

9:27AM BST 24 Sep 2010

Every company needs to pay its employees efficiently and the software used can be crucial. Sage and Quickbooks are well-known programs that work well, but they’re not the only ones. Iris is simple to install, straightforward in operation and has extensive support to guide users.

It’s aimed at small companies, with up to 50 employees. It’s pretty easy to add new employees or to delete others when they leave. One of the neatest elements of the design is the way it matches the ribbon menus of Office 2007, so it is instantly recognisable and so more intuitive to learn and to use effectively.

This is a strong feature, making transition to the software less intimidating and more quickly achievable and inviting.

There are limitations, though. It can’t handle multiple bank accounts for instance, thought the next-up version in the Iris range, Payroll Professional, does. But for more commonplace needs, such as choosing between payments on a weekly, fortnightly, four-weekly or monthly basis, it’s highly capable. The Professional version offers quarterly payments, too.

Of course, both versions can calculate a weekly or monthly salary based on annual income and work out pension contributions, student loans, income tax, national insurance. There are plenty of sophistications, too, plus the software keeps up to date with changes in legislation in the relevant areas.

Changing from one piece of software to another can cause hiccups, and of course requires new inputs of data. But there are extensive tutorials and guides. Also, fast and extensive customer support is promised. There’s an animated getting started guide which is comprehensive but a bit on the slow side.

What’s more, new customers typically receive either face to face training or training via an online conference session to get them started.

Overall, though, this is an efficient and useful program that should serve a small company and its accountants well.